The rise of female-led innovation in South Africa
The women who marched on 9 August 1956 may have thought they were fighting only for their freedom in that moment, but in truth, they were igniting a revolution that would inspire generations of South African women after them.
Taking up space
In 2025, the fight looks different, but the passion and fire remain the same. In South Africa’s economy, women are not just participating; they are rewriting the rules.
They’re leaving their comfort zones, stepping into industries that once shut them out and leaning into their innate abilities of nurture, care and empathy to change how business and leadership work.
They are taking up space.Yet as women rise and dominate certain spaces, a gap remains, and the work is far from over.
This women’s month, we celebrate not just the achievements of women but the qualities that make their presence essential and transformative.
Why female-led digital innovation matters
South Africa’s economy is layered with inequality, access to the internet is still uneven, digital skills aren’t distributed equally, and funding for women founders remains low.
Despite these challenges, women are forging new paths across the digital economy.According to McKinsey, a value-driven global organisation known for its data-driven and research-based insights, companies with gender-diverse leadership teams are 21% more likely to outperform financially.
Yet, in South Africa, only 13% of tech professionals are women, and less than 7% of venture capital funding reaches female-led startups.
Female-led innovation
Female-led innovation matters because it addresses South Africa’s realities head-on.
Women are building solutions for challenges they often experience firsthand.
For example, Mapalo Makhu and Nicolette Mashile, popularly known as The Financial Bunny, have become some of the country’s leading voices in financial literacy, teaching women and families to take control of their money through workshops, social media content and books.
Women like Candice Chirwa, also known as the Minister of Menstruation, are leading 100s of educational workshops and empowering girls with knowledge around female anatomy.
Lindiwe Nkuna Kgopa, founder of Lindiwe Pads, established Africa’s first large-scale sanitary pad manufacturing plant run entirely by women.
Nontokozo Madonsela and Neo Makhele are creating marketing campaigns that reflect the country’s diversity and brilliance.
These women have shown that innovation is not only possible but it thrives when women are involved.
Reshaping the spaces they occupy
On the bright side, things are shifting; more women are stepping up to participate and to lead, reshaping the various spaces they occupy.
The qualities women bring, such as empathy, care, curiosity and nurture, are becoming essentials in running businesses and managing teams.
Over the years, I’ve noticed that in diverse teams with strong female voices, there’s often a tendency to pause and look beyond the obvious answer, read between the lines and figure out exactly what the client is communicating without saying, and identify their pain point.
It's not just about hitting the brief but asking ‘and so what?’ and ‘why does it matter’, one more time. That extra layer of questioning often uncovers insights that transform the work.
Where women are driving change
- In marketing
- In entrepreneurship
Women are shifting how brands connect with real people. They’re creating inclusive, purpose-driven campaigns that resonate widely.
An inspirational example is Nontokozo Madonsela, former Group CMO at Momentum Metropolitan, who led the #SheOwnsHerSuccess campaign, a national effort to spotlight women’s financial empowerment.
Unlike typical banking ads, this campaign featured relatable stories and linked directly to tools and services built for women.
Another example that made us look beyond the brand and into the community is Neo Makhele, chief strategy officer at Ogilvy SA, who played a key role in developing Bride Armour, a bold campaign for Carling Black Label that tackled gender-based violence.
With women at the forefront of this campaign, they looked beyond the product, reaching to the emotions behind each bottle and asked the difficult questions.
This campaign stands out because the team not only looked at how they could make more sales, but also what the brand’s role is in addressing a crisis their customers live with every day.
In a country where alcohol abuse is closely linked with gender based violence, the campaign gave a voice to matters often left unspoken. The campaign reached over 38 million people and became a global case study.
Campaigns like these work because women tend to listen closely, build trust and lean into empathy. They create spaces for uncomfortable stories to be told.
While some of these impactful campaigns may have been birthed from lived experiences, women often have the instinct to ask different questions and challenge assumptions.
South African women are making waves in entrepreneurship, building brands from the ground up despite the various challenges they might face.
Women-owned businesses make up only 21.9% of all companies in South Africa, yet they are among the fastest-growing contributors to GDP and job creation.
Ann Kathrin Joos, founder of Standard Beauty, who was part of the 2024 Forbes 30 under 30 cohort, has built a skincare brand that challenges beauty norms, is affordable and inclusive in an industry where imported products are often championed.
Esethu Cenga, the co-founder of Rewoven, also part of the 2024 Forbes 30 under 30 list, is reimagining the future of sustainable fashion by turning textile waste into high-quality fabric, tackling both unemployment and protecting the environment at the same time.
Mathebe Molise, founder of Beauty on Tapp and Pastry Skincare, is bridging the gap and bringing international beauty products into the country while creating her product, Pastry Skincare, which caters to specific skin concerns tailored to their community.
These women are proof that entrepreneurship is about creating solutions that transform the industry and challenge the status quo.Challenges women still face
Progress is real, but the barriers remain steep:
- Mastercard found that 57% of South African Women entrepreneurs struggle to get capital, which is significantly higher than their male counterparts at 45% who face the same challenge.
- Women tend to spend more time than men on domestic chores, which can limit their ability to venture into businesses without support like childcare services.
- A lack of confidence may keep women from taking risks and venturing into male-dominated industries.
How you can celebrate and support
This Women’s Month, celebration can be an action. Here’s how to support the rise of women in digital:
- Hire women-led teams
- Amplify their work
- Invest where it matters
- Mentor someone
Choose women-led marketing agencies, design studios, or tech startups. They bring lived insight and fresh thinking.
At Special Effects Media, our leadership team is powered by a majority of women. This shapes the way we work, the questions we ask and how we produce the work we do.
Our teams bring perspectives and opportunities others might miss, leading us to create work that connects on a deeper level.
Tag their businesses, repost their campaigns, attend their webinars, or shout them out in your network. It doesn’t cost anything, but would help extend their reach.
Support women-led companies, whether through formal angel investing, buying from their online store, or simply paying them fairly.
Your time and experience are valuable. Volunteer with organisations that train women in tech, marketing, or entrepreneurship.
South African women are reimagining what leadership looks like; they are turning ideas into start-ups, local challenges into solutions, and campaigns into movements that change lives.
This Women’s Month, let’s go beyond applause. Let’s follow their lead.